Contents

Summary

A UK company has prototyped a simple add-on for aerosol valves, for improved foaming of known and new formulas. Using air or nitrogen etc., aerosol products for baking and catering, personal care and hygiene can be made with existing manufacturing lines. Manufacturers of such products are sought for license agreements.

Partner sought

Type of partner sought: industry.
Specific activity of partner: manufacturers of food products such as creams and mousses, manufacturers of hygiene and beauty products.
Role of partner sought: to start manufacturing existing or new products, incorporating the novel add-on under license.

Description

Many fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) are dispensed as foams (for example shaving foams, hair mousses shower foams, moisturizers, cleaning products) and some food products (squirty cream) are packaged in aerosol cans. The propellant in the can is almost always flammable or toxic or both. There is pressure on the industry to think of greener and safer ways for packaging. Another limitation is that only certain combinations of gases and foodstuffs or consumer products result in a foam that is consistent and feels good. Various solutions have been offered in the shape of valves and meshes, but these have proven to suffer from inconsistency in bubbles, or stability.
A UK company has prototyped an add-on for standard aerosol valves that promises to alleviate said problems at once. The add-on produces very consistent microbubbles at ca 30-40 um with all gases tried so far, and air. The resulting foam is very smooth, firm and appealing. The foam stays firmer for much longer than with existing products.
The invention will improve the look and feel of existing foamed products. Importantly, it has been successfully tested on formulas that are viscous or come with a high solids load (as high as 50% v/v). This in turn allows for completely new products to be launched. Foamed milk for coffee is one example (see the Picture), whisked egg whites and baking mixes, mousses, dressings and other condiments, sauces or toppings. These products would take the most laborious steps out of many kitchen and catering jobs. In FMCG, foamed personal care and dental products allow for smaller portion sizes and packaging for example.
The UK company seeks manufacturers of described products for license agreements. The add-on is easy to make and compatible with existing aerosol components and filling lines so not much technical involvement is needed.

Advantages and innovations

The patented add-on is uniquely good in producing consistent microbubbles with a multitude of gases and a diverse range of solution consistency.
The advantages are the possibility of improving existing products with very little additional cost, or launching entirely new products.

Development stage

Available for demonstration

Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)

Patent(s) applied for but not yet granted

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